Monday, February 26, 2007

Last week my mom suggested that we go to Charlotte, North Carolina and visit my cousin, T.J. Sounds like a good idea with all that has been going on with me I sure do need the break. So sure enough off we go (without the children). It was my mom, sister, and grandmother all in the van. What was our mission? Dunno, but hey, I'm just happy to get out of Delaware and breathe. The trip was beautiful. First we stopped in VA to visit our older sister. It was nice seeing my nieces, but my sweet nephew was sleeping so we didn't wake him this time. We proceeded down to Charlotte. Man! The weather was BEAUTIFUL. I mean it was warm, the air was clean and clear, and the people were very inviting like always. Why am I in Delaware? What is really there? Anyway so we went to T.J.'s home and it was beautiful. The development was nice and quite at all times. The homes ranged from ranch to two stories. He was in a ranch. T.J. had spaghetti prepared for us. It had meat in it, big and tiny pieces. I felt bad (as you all know I'm not eating meats), I told him and he just gave me this blank stare, lol. So I took some noodles and just a tiny bit of sauce and added some corn then ate. We were so happy to see each other. T.J. and I even went to the same college in South Carolina. Out of all my cousins, I'm closest to T.J. My sister and I stayed the two nights with him and my mom and grandma stayed at a nearby hotel, Wing Gate.

The whole time for our stay we laughed til we busted our spleens. We laughed so hard that after a while nothing came out our mouths. We just had our mouths open without sound, you know, the silent laugh. Tears, and gasping for air is what we did. What were we laughing about? Some of everything. Viagra, Billy Blanks, black colleges, children's behavior, dating, breaking up, and life's ups and downs. Boy it was well needed. They say laughter is food for the soul, well my soul is fat to the max!

Tj was a gentlemen the whole time at our stay. Little did he know I was watching his every move. He opened the car door for my mom every time we got out. He waited on us hand and foot. He took us to the furniture stores in Charlotte (that's what my mom wanted to see). He took whatever bags from us. It's like he didn't want us to lift a finger. It was royal treatment for real. I have been deprived from this so when he tended to my every need it gave me hope of what kind a man, I want, a gentleman. And that's just how he is. It wasn't for show, that's how he was raised. At first it felt weird, but after a while I got hip to the game. Ok, so then we were looking at brand new homes. These homes were big, beautiful, and CHEAP! For a 4 bedroom you are talking about $180,000. The kitchen was enormous. Man, our townhouse is $189,000 and the rooms are very small in De. Moms was loving every bit of it. She was saying that she didn't want retire in De. I don't blame her. I even got to see my former deacons from the church. They moved to Charlotte last year and they stay 15mins away from T.J. I told Ms. V some of the things that have been going on in my life. She was surprised, but she just wanted to make sure I was at peace, and I am. So we hung with Ms. V for a while and it was fun. She showed us her home and it's GORGEOUS! My mom was ready to move now. She found the furniture stores and new homes. Mom is ready. Now she needs to convince my dad, lol. We also went sight seeing. T.J. was a great escort showing us the area. We even saw where he worked which is the channel 9 station, he's one of the camera men.

I miss the dirty south. I miss the food. The first restaurant T.J. took us to was lovely. It was the Cheesecake Bistro. The prices were cheap but the portions were huge. I order the eggplant parmesan, mom had the seafood platter, sis had some chicken salad, and Ms. V had the gumbo soup. It was delicious! We all were sampling each other's plate. Oh, the atmosphere was romantic. They dimmed the lights down really low. The decor was MardiGaris which I really don't care for, but it was well decorated. When we were done (even though food was still on the plate) we all just looked at each other with bulging stomachs and half closed eyes. We started laughing again. The second restaurant was just as good. It was called Cheddar's. Oh lord, the food was extremely good. The onion rings were so tasty. The croissant rolls were to die for. They were piping hot and they drizzled the rolls with butter and honey. Crispy on the outside and moist inside. Please if you go to Charlotte, eat at Cheddar's. The food portion was big.

Yes we did go to church. It seems like there are many mega churches in Charlotte. We went to New Life something with Pastor John P. Kee. They sang many songs and I enjoyed everyone of them. It was like a freshness, a new start. Check this out, we saw a former colleague of ours that T.J. and I went to college with at the church. Small world, huh? I want to move to N.C. That would be a beautiful place to start over. I wish. I'll make the best of Delaware since I'm here.

The trip was well needed. I was able to pray like I wanted to and release my husband, pain, unforgiveness, etc... When people hurt or had hurt you, you must release them to God so He can heal that area in your heart. When I think about all that has happened to me, I don't hurt anymore, it's just a memory. God does answers prayers.